


Traffic Laws

by WalkWithPurpose



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, M/M, Or so we can hope, Pining, Recreational Drug Use, Slow Burn, Theatre, They're all idiots I'm just saying, Underage Drinking, Weed, lil bit of angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-01
Updated: 2017-08-16
Packaged: 2018-11-21 17:17:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11361990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WalkWithPurpose/pseuds/WalkWithPurpose
Summary: Jeremy has always hated walking, but the lack of a car forces him to do it much more frequently. The only thing he can hope for is a peaceful commute.This dream is shattered by a stranger, a red light, and a strange question.





	1. Act I, Scene I

Moving had never been a pleasant experience for Michael. He had to leave behind the few friends he had previously and start over in a new area. Over the years, he became progressively worse at making friends, knowing he would only leave them again. He chose to keep to himself instead, resulting in a sad sort of self-sufficiency. Out of all of them, this move was the least painful, as it was to college. As happy as Michael was to be away from his parents and previous high school, he was now crammed into a car with his new roommate. When he heard Michael grumble about being out of pot, he shoved him into the passenger's side door of his ancient car with very little context.

Michael knew three things about his roommate. His name was Ryan, he was from the local area, and pot took away his filter. The entire car ride he had been jabbering non stop, until they stopped at a red light.

“So, where is this dealer?”

Michael turned to him in shock, throwing his hands up. “I thought you were taking me to one!”

Ryan shrugged, glancing out his window. “I am now. That guy looks helpful enough.” 

Approaching the crosswalk was a man in a blue cardigan, hands stuffed casually into the pockets. The passerby managed to distract Michael from the issue at hand, his protest forgotten. That was until Ryan shouting out the open window broke him from the daze.

“Hey kid! You know where to buy some bud?”

Michael slapped his hand, a mortified expression on his face. “Dude! You can’t harass random pedestrians,” he hissed, seemingly unheard.

The man froze before he could reach the crosswalk, whipping his head around to the car. It took him a moment to process what Ryan had yelled and to trip over a response.

“B-Bud? Like Bud Light?” His brows furrowed in confusion, pointing to a building to his left. “There’s a liquor store, t-they might have some.”

Dual sighs emanated from the car at the impossibly long red light. Michael would have jumped out of the car to apologize to the poor guy at this point, but that would only scare him more. The last thing he wanted was to make his day even worse than it already was. Ryan seemed set on doing that regardless, with a roll of his eyes.

“No, like,” he paused for a moment to put air quotes around the word, “cigarettes.” 

The pedestrian was still the poster child of confusion, and it was a mystery to Michael as to how he could have gotten this far in life without ever encountering pot. After all, he looked to be around their age, but he could be wrong. The man nervously chewed on his lip, still standing on the broken down sidewalk.

“It sells cigarettes too. It’s next to the dollar store.”

The loud honking behind them became apparent, and the car sped off without another word. The stranger was left with a weird look on his face, before cursing aloud about missing his chance to cross. 

“What the hell?” 

“I know, right? How is someone so clueless about weed.” Ryan snorted, glancing in the rear view mirror. 

Michael put his face in his hands, mumbling several expletives to himself. As much as he would love to lecture Ryan on yelling at people through his car, he did have to live with the guy. He barely knew anything about him, so Michael kept his mouth shut through the ride back to the dorms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy moly this chapter was short.
> 
> This was a gift fic for my friend honestly, but I hope everyone else has enjoyed it as well.  
> Have a lovely day/night, everyone!
> 
> Hit me up on [tumblr](http://www.wewalkwithpurpose.tumblr.com)


	2. Act I, Scene II

Slushies had always been a good way to calm Michael down. His roommate had exasperated him enough that day with the weed stunt that Michael resorted to his coping mechanism. After scouting around town he managed to find a 7-11 a few blocks away from campus. There had never been qualifications for these stores, they could all be classified as generally odd and creepy. Regardless, Michael hopped out of his car with a smile as he opened the doors with a ding. Without a second look at the cashier, who was ignoring him as well, Michael headed for the slushie machine in the back. 

Much to Michael’s surprise, there was another man at the machine. As he approached, he could see a familiar look of confusion on his face as he stared in front of him, mumbling. The man was clearly a newcomer, a cute one too.

“Need some help?” 

The boy jerked around to face Michael, who was now standing at the slushie machine next to him. “Uh, kind of? I mean, I wasn't planning on getting anything.”

Michael raised a brow, gesturing in front of them. “You’re messing with a slushie machine and you don’t want one?”

“Y-yeah, I’m trying to figure out how everything works.” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I might apply to work here.”

Michael’s was dead silent, attempting to process this new information as he watched the man fiddle with his cardigan. The sweater seemed familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it. “Wait, were you walking by Sebastian Street earlier?” He didn’t wait for a response before slapping a hand over his face in embarrassment. “Oh my god, Ryan is such an asshole, I’m sorry.”

He blinked a few times, finally recognizing the face in front of him. “Oh! Um, D-don’t worry. You weren’t yelling…” he trailed off.

“Michael,” he supplied, grabbing two cups.

“I’m Jeremy.” Suspiciously eyeing the cups in Michael’s hands, he moved back to give him access to the machines. “Two?”

Michael stepped in front of Jeremy, eyes flickering between the options. “I’m making up for what happened. What’s your favorite flavor?”

Shoving his hands in his pockets, Jeremy shrugged. “I’ve never had a slushie so,” he shrugged. “All of them, or something?”

Michael whipped around with a look of pure horror, mouth agape. “What do you mean you’ve never had a slushie!” he yelped, earning the pair a sharp glare from the cashier. She seemed to be the only person working that day, the term used loosely. Ignoring her, Michael put the cups down and crossed his arms. “Jeremy, you have been missing out for a very long time. I have a proposition for you.”

“What is it?” He bit the inside of his cheek, a nervous habit he needed to drop. Lurching back at the plastic cup that had been shoved centimeters from Jeremy’s face, his eyes grew wide.

A smile split open Michael’s face. “These machines have more combinations than you can imagine.” He gestured towards the large stack of clear cups. “You’re going to try them all!”

Jeremy was left gawking at Michael, his brain rattling off thousands of potential issues. As enthusiastic as he was, the proposal was unrealistic. “How would I pay for that without getting the job?”

Shaking his head wildly, Michael began filling the two cups. “Hell no. You will regret getting a job here for the rest of your life, you have no idea.” He slapped two lids onto the red drinks, setting them on the counter. “I’ll pay whenever we meet here, sound fair?”

“What are the chances of us running into each other again?”

“I’ll be coming here an unhealthy amount.” He produced a sharpie, motioning to Jeremy’s hand. “May I?” Wordlessly he held out his arm, letting Michael scribble something onto it. A moment later, he put the cap back on, handing Jeremy his cup. “It’s cherry. See you dude!” Michael payed in a flash, disappearing from the store before Jeremy could manage to move.

The walk back to his dorm resulted in Jeremy bumping into far too many people. He kept replaying the encounter, trying to figure out who this Michael guy was.

“Hey dude, you okay?”

He snapped his head up to meet the questioning gaze of his roommate. “Uh, y-yeah Rich. I’m fine. Just a weird day.”

Rich pulled the empty cup out of Jeremy’s grip, despite his protests. “You went to 7-11? How did you manage to pick someone up at all, especially at 7-11?”

Jeremy’s brow crinkled, “What?”

Rich pointed at his right hand, “Heere, I know you’re not a ladies man, but there’s no way you wrote that yourself.” Looking down, he found that Rich was actually right. His skin was covered in the scribbles of black sharpie.

 _xxx-xxx-xxxx_  
_text for slushies_  
_m._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Michael is not the smoothest, but I love these nerds.  
> Also damn you spellcheck, slushie is a legitimate word.  
> I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter, there will be more to come!  
> \--  
> Have a lovely day/night, everyone!
> 
> Hit me up on [tumblr](http://www.wewalkwithpurpose.tumblr.com)


	3. Act I, Scene III

An exasperated sigh echoed around the room. “Jeremy, I love you, but you need to text the damn girl.” Rich had turned in his desk chair around to face him. Jeremy’s gaze flicked up at him and back down to the empty conversation on his phone.

“I-It’s not a girl, Rich,” he mumbled, face warming. Jeremy didn’t tend to talk about his sexuality, he had gotten enough shit about it in high school. The amount of homophobic people in the area left a sour taste in his mouth. From his brief glances around the dorm, he had noticed a small bisexual pride flag on Rich’s desk, giving him some hope.

Rich perked up, a grin cracking apart his face. “Hell yeah, dude! Meeting guys is easier.” Registering Jeremy’s hopeless expression, his tone softened. “He gave you his number, right?” 

Jeremy nodded with furrowed brows. “Yeah. I didn’t realize he did.” Rich raised an eyebrow, grin still present. 

“Would he do that if he didn’t want to talk to you?”

“Yeah, well…” Jeremy trailed off, trying to think of a more logical explanation. Michael was nice, outgoing, attractive, and way out of Jeremy’s league. Maybe he was just being friendly, not hitting on him. “I guess,” he sighed, pulling his phone up. “I’ll text him.” Appeased, Rich turned back to his desk, chuckling to himself. With his stomach flip flopping, he began drafting possible text messages.

**New Conversation with Michael**

_[You:] Hey_  
That sounds like you don’t care.

 _[You:] What’s up?_  
He wouldn’t know who this is from, idiot.

 _[You:] My roommate finished the milk._  
Where the hell did that come from?

 _[You:] Hi, it’s Jeremy._  
That’ll do.

He hit send before he could reconsider the action, tossing his phone to the side. Jeremy decided to dig up one of his books to use as a distraction. Michael might not text him back for hours, if at all and waiting would be torture. After rifling through his desk, he let out a long groan. He had somehow managed to leave his books, of all things, at home. “I’m going to the library. Be back soon,” he mumbled out, grabbing his backpack before departing. Having only visited the campus library once before, it took a few wrong turns before finding the entrance. Jeremy found himself wandering through the shelves, fingers trailing across familiar titles. Plucking out Fahrenheit 451, as he vaguely remembered reading it in high school, he took it to a table in the corner. As Jeremy slid into the seat, his phone screen lit up with a new number.

_[Michael:] hey_  
_[Michael] taking me up on slushies already_

Jeremy’s shoulders slumped, staring down at the texts. Of course that’s why he had the number. It almost seemed like a strange business arrangement, or drug deal. Michael was only doing this to make up for his friend yelling at him from his car.

_[You:] Oh, no, sorry. I probably shouldn’t have texted._

Anxiety began pooling in his stomach and Jeremy feared that he had already lost a potential friend. As his hands moved down to fiddle with his cardigan, the screen flashed. Jeremy tentatively slid open the lock on his phone, thoughts running at a mile a minute.

**NEW MESSAGE FROM MICHAEL**

_[Michael:] want to hear a joke_

Out of all the things he had expected Michael to respond with, it was certainly not that. Telling him to stop texting, sure. An attempt of humor out of seemingly nowhere was just odd. Somehow he had intrigued Jeremy, and he typed up a response.

_[You:] Sure?_  
_[Michael:] whats the difference between you and the hot guy at the grocery store_

Jeremy scrunched up his nose in confusion. He could think of a thousand differences between him and the grocery store guy, mainly in appearance. As much as he hated to admit it, from Michael’s short description he knew exactly which worker he was referring to.

_[You:] I wasn’t restocking soup?_  
_[Michael:] well_  
_[Michael:] neither of you were_

There must have been some underlying joke that he didn’t understand, because this conversation made no sense. Why was Michael bringing him into some strange guessing game with no foreseeable end? It was still nice to talk to someone, so Jeremy continued typing.

_[You:] I can reach the high shelves?_  
_[Michael:] no_  
_[Michael:] only one of you got my number_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not going to lie, when I wrote the soup part the first thing that came to mind was the Soup Store video.  
> Well, see if you can pick out the Be More Chill novel and Dear Evan Hansen references that I not so subtly slid in here.  
> ~  
> I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, and have a lovely day/night!
> 
> Hit me up on [tumblr](http://www.wewalkwithpurpose.tumblr.com)


	4. Act I, Scene IV

Michael sat red faced, eyes glued to the screen in front of him. The last text stared back at him in a mocking fashion.

_[You:] only one of you got my number_

He silently chided himself for the flirting, it had been unintentional to a certain degree. Part of him did want to hit on Jeremy, sure. He just wasn’t sure how the other would react or if he could handle it himself. Saving the project he was working on, Michael closed his audio editor and checked his phone one more time. At the lack of response, he shoved the laptop into his bag and left the library. Freshman orientation was tomorrow anyway, he had to set up the sound system. No matter what school Michael attended in his teens, he always ran sound for school events. Assemblies, musicals, and awards ceremonies were all his territory. Out of the few people qualified for the job, he was the only one who volunteered. It was a good way for Michael to pick up extra cash, not to mention the auditorium was quite a calming place when empty.

Twisting his key in the double doors, he slipped in and let them automatically lock again. Slipping into the booth in total darkness, he flicked on a few light switches. Only the aisle and booth lights were necessary, he didn’t want to be disturbed by curious professors. Michael’s phone illuminated the sound board, which was just beginning to turn on.

_[Jer:] Yeah! That’s true._  
_[Jer:] I mean, I don’t know if I’m the best option for a friend._  
_[Jer:] Thanks for talking to me anyway._

Pausing in his movements as the orange lights blinked on, Michael sighed. He wasn’t exactly aiming for friendship with Jeremy, but he would take it. He seemed like a great person, and he would like to be friends with him if nothing else.

_[You:] yeah no prob man_  
_[You:] youre great friend material dont worry_

He plugged his phone into the board, softly playing music as he worked. Moving up to the booth, he started replacing batteries in microphones and testing out just about every piece of equipment. The monitors seemed to be working, the god mic was in top shape, and he only had to go through three auxiliary cords to find one that worked. Michael exchanged texts with Jeremy in between tasks until he was completely set up for the assembly. Why the dean needed so much shit for freshman orientation, he had no idea.

The upside of moving in early is that one of the upperclassmen was willing to show him the set up before the year started. While Michael’s primary focus was sound, he had been thrown into other jobs during high school productions. So few people wanted to work tech that in senior year he did lighting design as well. Now familiar with the college’s lighting board, he was free to mess around before he left. 

A few basic washes with cues had been programmed in before Michael ended up falling asleep in the booth. It was nearly three in the morning when he closed his eyes for a moment and didn’t open them again for five hours. 

Auditorium speakers blasting classic rock at full volume was the definition of a rude awakening. 

Shooting straight up in his chair, Michael screamed, “What the fuck!” to an empty auditorium. Leaning out the booth window, he saw his phone, still plugged into the sound system, blaring his morning alarm. He hurried out and turned off the music, unplugging his phone. Checking the time, he discovered that he had less than half an hour before students would start pouring in, meaning twenty minutes before the dean would arrive. Doing his best to look like he didn’t sleep in the auditorium, he used his phone camera to fix his hair and pulled on a spare hoodie. Checking the time again, he saw a notification.

_[Jer:] Are you up for slushies today?_

The message brought a chuckle out of Michael, who typed while turning on the rest of the auditorium lights. 

_[You:] im busy this morning_  
_[You:] but sure_  
_[Jer:] I am too, we could meet up later?_  
_[You:] sounds good_  
_[You:] ive gotta go, see you_

Hearing the click of a door, Michael quickly turned off the colorful wash and turned towards the entrance, seeing the dean. He gave the man brief instructions on how to use the microphone, which consisted only of how to turn it on and off.

Soon enough students began trickling in and the two parted ways, Michael slipping into the booth. Checking that his speaker was on, he explored a bit more of the booth until the assembly started. He leaned back in his chair, relaxing as the chatter quieted down. It took Michael a few moments to register that the auditorium seemed to be in complete silence, other than a very distant voice. Checking the soundboard, he noticed there was no signal from the microphone, despite it working earlier. With a groan, he exited the booth and jogged up the side aisle to the dean.

“It’s not working, no one can hear me,” he snapped, pushing the microphone in Michael’s direction.

Taking it from the man, he looked down at the tiny screen at the bottom, which was blank. Of course the dean hadn’t listen to a single thing he had told him earlier. _To turn it on or off, hold down the red power button for ten seconds._ Everything is in one ear and out the other, even with him.

He tapped his foot impatiently. “Hurry up! We need to start!” Michael let go of the power button, the screen now glowing orange.

“You never turned it on sir,” he said far louder than necessary, handing the mic back over. Somehow he managed to keep his cool as he strutted off the stage and into the dark, a loud voice booming around the auditorium. Next time, he would have to put some effects on it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I updated already, I'm almost impressed with myself.  
> Very little interaction between Michael and Jer, but hold onto you hats kids. This was necessary for plot, okay.  
> ~  
> I'm guessing about 6 or 7 scenes in this act ;)  
> ~  
> Have a lovely day/night everyone!
> 
> Hit me up on [tumblr](http://www.wewalkwithpurpose.tumblr.com)


	5. Act I, Scene V

From the middle of the auditorium, Jeremy was forced to squint at the figure on stage. Cursing how cavernous the room was, he leaned forward in his seat to make out the features on the student’s face. He had to be imaging things, there was no way-

“Jeremy?” shit, he had been zoning out a lot lately. He hadn’t even noticed Christine nudging him.

“Sorry Chris,” he mumbled, tearing his gaze from the stage. It was just the dean now, the other man had walked off. “He looked really familiar.”

She smiled apologetically as she turned her attention towards the presentation. “I didn’t get a very look look at him. It’s probably just Michael, he likes being in the auditorium.” Jeremy’s eyes widened, but Christine’s attention was already pulled into the dean’s speech. He knew very well that poking her any further in this situation wouldn’t end well, so he did his best to focus. That only resulted in his thoughts wandering, going through endless scenarios to explain what just happened. Truthfully, Jeremy knew that with the amount of colleges in his area, it probably wasn’t the Michael he knew. He still held onto a sliver of hope, ignoring the entire assembly.

What felt like hours later, the students were dismissed, leaving Jeremy to search through the crowd. Stuck in the middle it was difficult to see more than the back of anyone’s head. As he finally reached the auditorium doors, he weaved through the open space looking for Michael. Staring at several students had only earned him odd looks, and he didn’t have the guts to stop and ask anyone. The search was fruitless, even after scouring the halls for half an hour. Defeated, Jeremy began the long walk back to his dorm. Perhaps he was imagining things, the likelihood that Michael went to his college was low. Trudging back down the hall, he found himself pausing outside the auditorium. Faint music was coming from inside, as the door hadn’t been closed completely.

Slipping into the room, Jeremy eased the door shut behind him. The theater seemed to be empty, the only light coming from the tech booth and the stage.

“Hello?” he called out, receiving no response. “Is anyone in here?” Figuring someone must have left their music on, Jeremy walked into the empty booth, surrounded by unfamiliar equipment. Spying a phone and auxiliary cord, a wave of relief washed over him as he unplugged it, the music ceasing. 

“Canigula, if you turned off my Marley again I am taking your key!”

Jeremy looked around frantically, trying to place where the voice had come from. “What?”  
In place of an answer, faint metal clanging could be heard and a very tired Michael came through the booth door. “I don’t know what you touched, but you shouldn’t be-” His grumbling came to an abrupt halt as the the two made eye contact. “Jeremy? What are you doing here?”

Freezing up, Jeremy’s nervousness returned. “I was on m-my way to my d-dorm and uh, heard the music.”

A grin broke open Michael’s face as he stared at Jeremy. “You go to school here too? That’s great!” Resting a hand on Jeremy’s shoulder, he softened his tone. “Don’t worry, I thought it was some couple breaking into the booth to have sex. You’re fine.”

Jeremy’s nose crinkled as he looked back up. “Does that happen often?”

“The guy from last year complained about it.” Shrugging, Michael brushed it off, his excitement returning. “Are you still up for slushies? We need to celebrate this.”

“Of course.” A small smile made it onto Jeremy’s face, turning into a look of surprise as Michael grabbed his arm and pulled him down the short steps. He had miscalculated Jeremy’s weight, causing him to stumble and nearly crash into Michael with a laugh. 

Michael did his best to ignore the heat in his face that the practical giggle had caused. Turning off the remaining lights, they left the auditorium and began walking to the parking lot.

The idle chatter soon ceased.“Crap, I need my wallet,” Jeremy sighed out, stopping dead in his tracks. “My roommate will be out later, and I’ll be locked out without my ID. Do you mind?” Michael shook his head, letting his companion lead the way. Before he knew it, Jeremy was knocking on what was presumably the door to his room. “Rich, let me in!” Surely enough the door swung open.

“Heere, how many times have you-” His eyes flicked over to Michael as Jeremy walked around Rich into the room. “Jeremy, who’s this?” he said in a sing-song manner, motioning for Michael to come inside.

“My friend, Michael,” he spoke, digging around the room for his wallet.

Rich smiled, turning his attention back to the newcomer. “Where did he pick you up?” Jeremy sputtered in the corner as Michael flushed, deciding the truth was ridiculous enough to stop the questions.

“My roommate yelled at him from my car, asking where to buy weed. From there, a beautiful friendship was born.” Rich burst out laughing, doubling over.

Jeremy whipped around from his desk, “Wait, you were asking about weed? Is that what bud means?” This only caused Michael to join in on Rich’s cackling. 

Wiping a tear from his eye, Rich straightened up, trying to keep himself under control. “I approve, Heere.” Fishing a brown wallet out of his back pocket, he tossed it to Jeremy, who promptly dragged Michael from the room. “Use protection!” Rich called after them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened.  
> The auditorium might become more significant in this, but who am I to say? Spoilers? What are those?
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and have a lovely day/night!
> 
> Hit me up on [tumblr](http://www.wewalkwithpurpose.tumblr.com)


	6. Act I, Scene VI

Three weeks and several slushie dates later, classes had started up. Michael and Jeremy were beginning to see each other more often, thanks to a similar schedule. Whether it was driving to 7-11 or playing video games in their dorms, it was obvious how much they enjoyed each other’s company. They continued learning more about each other as they spent time together, resulting in Michael meeting Jeremy’s friends from high school. He however, hadn’t met a single person who knew Michael besides Christine, which was making his situation more difficult. 

Two days ago, Michael had gotten a phone call while they were playing video games. Jeremy did his best not to intrude, but he noticed how his friend’s face fell bit by bit. Seconds later he grabbed his bag and excused himself, still on the phone. 

_[You:] Michael?_  
_[You:] Are you okay?_

He didn’t respond that day.

_[You:] You’re worrying me dude._  
_[You:] Text me in the morning, okay?_

Morning came and went, with Jeremy jumping at every buzz of his phone. Not a single one was from Michael. Pestering Christine was fruitless, she hadn’t seen him for the past few days either. Even the auditorium was silent when she went in, and Michael was always blasting music when he worked. 

On day two he went through an endless cycle of typing and deleting what he was going to say, not quite sure how to handle the situation. In the end, he resorted to something he hated doing: asking Rich for help.

“Michael? As in the hot guy Michael who’s always here?” Jeremy nodded affirmatively, a bud of hope blooming in his chest. “Sorry dude, I don’t know where to find him.” Noticing Jeremy’s crushed expression, he tagged onto his last sentence. “Try Chloe.” Without another word, he grabbed his bag and ran out of their room. If he could make it to the common room before she left for class, Chloe was sure to be there. Thankfully, he arrived just as her group was rising from the plush couch.

“Jerry? What’s wrong?” Taking a moment to catch his breath, he mumbled out the gist of the situation. 

Chloe leaned towards him, squinting. “What? I can’t hear you.”

He spoke again, louder this time, “Do you know Michael? Michael Mell?”

Looking around the group a few mumbles could be heard, but nearly everyone was shaking their head. “I’ve never heard of him, sorry. I’d help, but I have trig next and I can’t miss it.” She walked off with a friendly wave, leaving Jeremy alone in his search once again. Taking a shaky breath, he readjusted the backpack on his shoulders and turned around, only to be met with an all too familiar face.

“Why are you looking for headphones kid?”

Jeremy mentally slapped himself for not asking Jenna, she should have been the first person he went to. Swallowing his pride, he tried to clear his head. “Do you know him?”

Huffing, Jenna looked down at her phone. “Don’t avoid the question.” Despite her statement, she continued before Jeremy could open his mouth. “I’ll tell you where he is if you tell me something I want to know.”

Weighing his options, Jeremy realized he didn’t have much of a choice. As much as he didn’t want to give into Jenna Rolan’s gossip trade, he had to. “What do you want to know?” This brought a smirk to her face as she tucked her smartphone back in its pocket.

“What’s Michael to you?”

Jeremy froze, trying to process what she had just asked. “Wha-”

“You heard me.” Jenna rolled her eyes, tapping her foot on the hardwood floor. “What is he to you?” 

Swallowing, Jeremy found himself speaking without any thought, “He’s my friend.” With a raised eyebrow, Jenna held his gaze.

“Whatever. He’s in the theater last I heard, I’m not sure if he left since Tuesday.”

With a thank you Jeremy left the room, making a beeline for the auditorium. From the, admittedly small, knowledge he had on Michael, he hadn’t bothered to move much. Easing the door open silently, he took note of the pitch black theater. He couldn’t hear anything, not even the creaking of the catwalk, indicating someone was there. After a check of the booth he determined it was empty as well. The aisle and booth lights were off, only the pink and blue glow of the stage lights helped guide him. If Michael wasn’t anywhere in sight, he had to be in the catwalk. Hopefully he was sleeping or ignoring everything, he wanted to find him. It wasn’t long before Jeremy had made his way up to the catwalk, sticking his head around the corner.

There he was, facing the stage with a pair of bulky headphones and tuning out everything. He seemed to be off in his own world, lights casting dynamic shadows on his face. If Jeremy wasn’t so worried, he would have taken a picture of the scene in front of him.

“Hey.” Jeremy sat down, his friend turning towards him with wide eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So  
> How about that angst  
> ~~  
> I'm horrible with keeping chapter promises, but according to plan the next one should be the final of this act.  
> Also sorry for not updating! I was preparing for a convention and I just now got to finish this chapter.  
> ~  
> Thank you for 100 kudos! You all really make my day sometimes.  
> Have a lovely day/night everyone!


End file.
